Mihai Dimian confirms no reduction in Romanian social scholarships

Romanian Education Minister Mihai Dimian has announced that the government will not propose a reduction in the total annual amount provided to students through social scholarships. This decision follows significant public controversy and protests from parents, students, and organizations like Salvați Copili România, who argued that “poverty does not go on vacation” and that support should continue during school breaks.

Instead of reducing total support, the Ministry plans to increase the income threshold for eligibility by approximately 7%, which is expected to expand the number of students receiving assistance. The proposal includes a potential restructuring of how funds are distributed: rather than spreading the amount across the entire year, the ministry is considering providing a higher monthly amount specifically during the instructional period to better align with the scholarship's goal of preventing school dropout and encouraging academic participation.

Dimian noted that while some European countries do not provide social scholarships during holidays, the primary objective of this specific support is to facilitate educational engagement. The ministry maintains that a higher monthly stipend during school months would not necessarily decrease the total annual support received by each student.